Ice rink resurfacing machine



P 1956 F. J. ZAMBONI ICE RINK RESURFACING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed001;. 25. 1-952 ZNVENTOR. Fem/z J. Zmmav/ BY J1 i A rap/v5 Sept. 25,1956 F. J. ZAMBONI ,7

ICE RINK RESURFACING MACHINE Filed Oct. 23, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 IGIINVENTOR. Fen/w: J. ZpMaa/v/ 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 F. J. ZAMBON] ICE RINKRESURFACING MACHINE M R E W a. J W e m f V. B \m: e: Om. Im-

Sept. 25, 1956 Filed Oct. 25, 1952 p 1955 F. J. ZAMBONI ICE RINKRESURFACING MACHINE 4 Sheet-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. as, 1952 IaBWB mmvroze.58 Fem/k ZQMEQN/ BY 7 I85 I78 7 United States Patent ICE RINKRESURFACING MACHINE Frank J Zamboni, Paramount, Calif. ApplicationOctober 23, 1952, Serial No. 316,495 8 Claims. (CI. 37-13) The presentinvention relates to ice rink resurfacing machines, and is in the natureof an improvement on the machine shown and described in my co-pendingapplication, Serial No. 93,478, filed May 16, 1949, now Patent No.2,642,679.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a new andimproved machine for smoothing and renewing the surface of the ice in askating rink after the same has been cut up and roughened by skates, andmore particularly, to provide an improved machine capable of refinishingthe ice to a smooth, unblemished sur face in a single pass.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a machine of theclass described embodying .a new and improved arrangement for supportingthe blade which shaves the ice, and for holding the same firmly downagainst the ice.

A further object is to provide a machine having a spreader trailingbehind the shaving blade, wherein water is continuously supplied to thespreader, and any surplus water is continuously drawn off and dischargedinto a suitable receptacle.

Another object of the invention is to provide an ice resurfacing machinehaving means for picking up excessive Water standing on the surface ofthe ice, leaving the ice with only a thin film of water on the surfaceto fill up cracks and cuts that are too deep to be removed.

Still another object of the invention, in one of its aspects, is toprovide a machine having a water spreader, wherein the water is takenfrom the same receptacle into which the shaved ice is discharged.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent to thoseskilled in the art upon consideration of the following detaileddescription of the preferred embodiment thereof, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a partially cut away side elevational view of a machineembodying the principles of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear View of the same;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged top plan view of the ice resurfacing mechanism,taken at the section line 3-3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken at 44 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a sectional viewtaken at 5--5 in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a section'takenat 6--6in Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view taken at 7-7 in Fig. 3, showingthe water spreader resting on the 'ice in operating position;

Fig. 8 is a view similar to 'Fig. 7, but showing the spreader raised totransport position;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary section, taken at99 in Fig. '3; and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary sectional view takenat 10-10 in Fig. 4.

In the drawings, the machine is seen to comprise a small, four wheeldrive automotive vehicle '15 of the type known popularly as a jeep, uponwhich are mounted a snow box 16, water tank 17, ice refinishingmechanism 18, and elevator-'conveyer 19.

j ture which rests on the ice and The vehicle 15 has fore and aftextending frame members 20, and welded to the front ends thereof is atrans: verse channel member 22. A transverse angle iron 24 is welded tothe rear ends of the frame members 20, and mounted on the said angleiron are two laterally spaced, vertical posts 26, which support the rearend of the snow box 16. Other posts 28 and 30 support th center andfront ends of the snow box, and these are welded or otherwise attachedto the frame members 20: A framework of channel irons 32 is secured tothe tops of the posts, and the box. 16 is mounted thereon. I

The driver's seat is shown at 34, and is carried at the end of asupporting pipe 35, which is welded to and pro jects rearwardly from theangle iron 24 at the left-hand end thereof. A steering wheel 36 isconnected by means of a torque tube 38 and universal joint 39 to anextension 40 of the steering shaft. Located ahead of the drivers seatand projecting laterally from the vehicle body are the other drivingcontrols, comprising a clutch pedal 41, brakepedal 42 and acceleratorpedal 43. These are connccted by suitable linkage and cables (not shownto the clutch mechanism, brakes, and throttle, respectively, andfunction in substantially the same manner as conventional automobilecontrols. Since the controls form no part of the invention, it is deemedunnecessary to describe the same in more detail. It will'also beappreciated that the location of the drivers seat is not necessarilylimited to the locationshown, but might be placed considerably higher toafiord a better view of the ice. However, the arrangement shown has theadvantage of placing the driver close to the ice resurfacing mechanism18, where he can closely observe the operation of the mechanism and thecondition of the ice resurfaced thereby.

The ice refinishing unit 18 consists of a sled-like strucis towed behindthe vehicle (see Figures 1 and 3), which axle adjacent the left andright by drawbars 45 and 46 are attached to the rear hand springs,respectively. The drawbars 45, 46 may be solid steel bars, with theirrear ends bent downwardly and projecting thru holes in cars 47 on thefront edge of the unit. The attachment .of the drawbars 45, 46 to therear axle. of the vehicle is a pivotal connection, which allows them toswing in a horizontal plane. A third bar 48 is similarly connected tothe rear axle of the vehicle adjacent the left hand spring, and extendsdiagonally rearward to a slotted plate 49 on the front edge of the unit'18. The slot in the plate 49 extends transverse to the direction offorward travel, and the: rear end of the bar 48 is "bent downwardly intothe slot, where it is slidable along the length thereof. Thisarrangement permits a limited amount of lateral shifting of the unit 18with respect to the vehicle, so that the operator can slide the unitover into corners of the rink as he rounds the .corners. Such lateralshifting of the unit 18 is, of course, limited to the confines of theslot.

The sled-like structure of the unit 18 is made up of two .ioraand-aftspaced, transversely extending angle irons 52 and 53, the ends of whichabut against and are joined to ,end plates 54 and 55,. The bottom edgesof the end plates are bent inward y to form narrow flanges 56, whichfunction as runners .on the ice, while the top edges of the end plates:are bent in to form wider flanges 57 that reinforce and stiffen theplates. The angle irons 52, 53am also connected togetherintermediatetheirends by four laterally spaced bars .60, .60, 61 and 61, which haveother functions that ,will be described presently.

Mounted on the unit 18 transverse to the direction of forward travel isa heavy, extremely sharp knife blade 64, which :is bolted :to theunderside of an. inverted 7T- shaped beam '65. :Disposed directly aheadof the blade '64:'topick::up the shaved ice produced thereby and carryit in toward the center of the machine is a worm screw conveyor 66having two oppositely wound helix blades 67 and 68, that are separatedat the center by a space to permit passage of the chain and paddles ofthe endless elevator-conveyor 1 9. The shaft69 of the screw conveyor 66'is journaled at its endslin bearings 70, which are mounted on the insideface of the end plates 54, S5, A sprocket wheel 71 (Figure 3) is securedto the shaft 69 at itsmidpoint, and the conveyor 66 is' dfiv'en' by thechain 72 of conveyor 19, which is tfaine'd around the sprocket. Thechain 72 has transversely disposed paddles 73 attached thereto at spacedintervals, and shaved ice pushed in to the centerby the worm screwconveyor 66 is picked up by the paddles as and startup thru a verticalconveyor housing 74. The housing 74 is of rectangular cross section,dimensioned to provide a fairly close fit for the paddles 73, andextends up from a point just above the surface of the ice,

the latter pass under the sprocket 71 to a point above the back board 75of the snow box 16.

At the top end of the housing is another sprocket wheel (not shown)mounted on a shaft 76, and the conveyor chain 72 passes over thislast-named sprocket and leaves the housing thru an opening irithe frontwall thereof.

Side wings 77 keep the snow from falling away from I the paddles 73until the latter have passed over the back board 75 of the snow box, atwhichpoint the unsupported snow drops from the conveyor into the box.-

The conveyor chain travels forwardly over the top of the snow box, andat the front end thereof, passes over a sprocket in the top of anothervertical housing 80, to descend thru the latter to the surface of theice. At the bottom end of the housing 80, the chain passes under anothersprocket and then travels rearwardly therefrom to the sprocket 71. Thefront housing 80 is mounted on the transverse channel member 22 forsupport, and the top ends of the two housings 80, 74 are held in fixedspaced relation to one another by an adjustable turnbuckle rod 81. p

The drive for both of the conveyors 19 and 66 is taken from a powertake-off (not shown) on the vehicle, and in the embodiment illustrated,is transmitted thru a flexible shaft 82 (Figure 2). The flexible shaft82 is connected to the power take off underneath the body of thevehicle, and passes up along the right-hand side of the machine to adriving connection with a shaft 83. The shaft 83 is rotatably supportedin abearing block 84 mounted on the front side of the housing 74somewhat below the top end thereof, and fixed on the shaft is a sprocketwheel 85 that drives a chain 86. The chain 86 passes over anothersprocket 87 on shaft 76, and in this manner, the chain 72 is driven bythe power take off. As was pointed out earlier, the chain 72 drives theworm screw conveyor 66 thru sprocket 71, and thus both conveyers aredriven.

The rear housing 74 is detachably supported on the I frame structure ofthe unit 18 by means of the two center bars 61, 61, thru which thehousing passes. Trunnion pins 90 (Figures 3 and 9) project laterallyfrom opposite sides of the housing 74, and these are received within"slots 91 formed in the top edges of the bars 61, 61. The pins 90 areconfined within the slots 91 by means of two short bars 92, each ofwhichis pivotally connected to one of the bars 61, 61 by a bolt 93. The bars92 are provided with notches in their bottom edges which are located toreceive the projecting ends of the pins 90, and the latter are thusoverlaid by the bars. A pin 94 is passed thru aligned holes in the bars61 and 92, to lock the latter in place.

When the parts are in the condition shown in Figure 9, the housing 74 issolidly attached to the bars 61, 61, and therefore is supported on theframe of the unit 18. When the unit 18 is raised to transport position,as will be described shortly, the housing 74 rises with it; beingmaintained parallel with the front housing 80 by the link 81. Todisconnect the housing 74 from the unit 18, as when the machine is beingstripped for shipment, it is necessary The unit 18 is raised totransport position by means of three vacuum booster units 96, which aremounted on the vehicle across the back side of the snow box 75. Theunits 96 are of the type used to operate truck brakes, and the purposeof using three of them is to get enough power to lift the weight of theunit 18. Vacuum for the booster units 96 is taken from the intakemanifold of the vehicle engine, and a reservoir tank 97 is mounted onthe right rear fender to provide increased vacuum capacity forsimultaneous operation of the three units 96. The tank 97 is connectedto the intake manifold, and is constantly being exhausted while theengine is idling or operating at normal speed. A pipe 98 connects thetank 97 with the units 96 thru a valve 99, and by opening the latter,the units 96 are operated.

A pull rod 102 projects downwardly from the bottom of each of thebooster units 96, and a clevis at the lower end thereof is connected bya pin 103 to an. arm 104. The arm 104 is fixed to and extends rearwardlyfrom a transverse rock shaft 105, which is rotatably supported inbearing blocks mounted on the posts 26. The arms 104 of the two units onthe left extend beyond the pins 103, and at the outer ends thereof areclevis fittings 106 which are connected by pull rods or cables 107 tothe cross bars 60, 60 of the unit 18. Opening the valve 99 causes thepull rods 102 to pull upwardly, which rocks the arms 104 and shaft in acounterclockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 4. The arms 104, inturn, lift the frame of the unit 18 to the transport position somedistance above the ground, and the machine can then travel over pavementor other rough surface without damaging the sharp edge of the blade 64.When the machine is in readiness to start refinishing ice, the valve 99is closed, and the booster units 96 then lower the frame to the ice. Ashort length of steel bar 108 is welded to the angle iron 24 on the backend of the vehicle (Figure 3) and projects rearwardly therefrom over thefront angle iron 52 of unit 18, to serve as a limit stop for the framewhen the latter is raised.

One important aspect of my invention has to do with the arrangement forsupporting the blade 64 and providing adjustments thereof, and thestructure relating to this portion of the machine will now be described.Projecting from opposite ends of the T-shaped beam 65 at the leadingedge thereof are trunnions 109 which are pivoted on the midpoints oflever arms 110 and 111. The front ends of arms 110, 111 are connected totheir respective end plates 54, 55 by pivots 112, and the arms are swingable in vertical planes to raise and lower the beam 65 and blade 64.

The arm 110 at the left-hand end of the blade is adjusted vertically bymeans of a hand wheel 115 fixed to the top end of a screw shaft 116 (seeFigure 6), on the left-hand side of the drivers seat. The shaft 116extends down thru a hole in the horizontal flange of the rear angle iron53, and is supported thereon by a hearing 118 which permits freerotation of the shaft, but restrains the same against endwise movement.A nut 120 is screwed onto the threaded portion of the shaft 116projecting below the supporting flange, and an upstanding bar 121 weldedto the rear end of the arm 110 is received between two laterally spacedears 122 on the nut 120, to which it is connected bya pin 124. Thus, therear end of the arm 110 is adjustable vertically by turning thehandwheel 115, which causes the nut 120 to advance along the threads ofthe screw-shaft 116 in one direction or the other, carrying the arm 110with it.

Arm 111 at the right-hand end of the blade is adjusted vertically bymeans of a hand wheel 126 fixed to the top end of' a screw shaft 128(see Figure 4), on the righthand side of the drivers seat.- The shaft128 extends down thru a hole in the horizontal flange of the anglelf01'153yfl11di8 supported thereon bya'bearinglim which permits freerotation of the shaft, but prevents endwise movement thereof. A'nut 432is screwed "onto the threaded lowerportion or" the shaftyan'd :formedintegrally with said nut on the front side thereof arespaced cars whichreceive the end of an arm 134 between them. A pin 136 passes thrualigned .holes in the ears and arm 134.

The arm 134 is welded 'to .and projects rearwardly from a torque tube138 that extends laterally-to'the right from hand wheel 126 to a pointjust s'horto'f the endplate 55. The torquetube 138 is pournaled at itsends in bearings 140, and fixed to the right-hand end of the tube is arearwardly extending arm 142 (Figure .5), which is connected by alink144 to a fitting 145 on the rear en'd of the arm 111. Byvirtueofthis arrangement, the rear endof the arm 111 is adjustable vertically byturning the handwheel 126, =which causes the nut 132 to travel up ordown the screw shaft 128, rocking' fhe torque tube 138 and therebyraising or' lowering the rear-end of the arm 111.

Both of the arms 110 and 1 11 are resiliently urged downward bycantilever "leaf springs 146 which are secured :at their front-ends by'brackets147 to their respective end plates 54, '55, and which beardownwardly at their rear ends on the rear ends of the arms 110, 111.

These springs exert a powerful downward pressure on the ends of thebeam65 and blade .64, taking up any clearances in the linkage system andholdingthe blade down against the ice with a spring load.

In addition to'the springs "146, there is a third transversely disposedtension spring '150 (Figure which acts thru a link 151, bell-crank 152,and push'rod 153, to press downwardly on the beam "65 and blade 64 atthe midpoint thereof. Thebcttom-endof the push rod 153 is receivedbetween twolaterally 'spaced lugs 154, which are weldedtothetop of thebeam 65 in the back corner formed at the junction of the vertical flangewith the horizontal flange. The springt is a heavy coil spring, which isheld at one end by a hook on the link 151, and secured at the other endto a downwardly projecting post 155 on the end of .afibell-crank arm156. The arm 156 normally extends outwardly, awayfrom the spring 150,and the post 155 is slightly over-center with respect to the line ofpull of the spring and the bearing support 16% of the bell-crank, :asbest shownin Figure 3. The other arm 161 of the bell-crank isconsiderably longer than and extends in the opposite'direction fromarrn156, and has a downwardly bent end portion 162.which abuts against alaterally projecting angle stop 163 welded to one side of the frame bar6t). The tension of spring 150 acting on arm 1156 exerts acounter-clockwise torque on the bell-crank, holding arm 161, 162 againstthe stop 163.

The purpose of this arrangement is to providemeans whereby the tensionin spring 150 can be relaxed'to perniit connection to or disconnectionfrom the link 151. When the spring is to be disconnected, the mm 161 ispulled around in a clockwise direction, carrying the post 155 overcenter and bringing itaround towardthe spring. This shortens thedistance between the ends of the spring, and relaxes the tension so thatthe spring can readily be disconnected. To restore the spring 150 tooperative condition, the bell-crank is rotated to bring the post 155 'intoward the end of link 151; after which the ends of the spring areconnected to the link and to the post, and the bell crank is pulledaround in the counter-clockwise direction to stretch the spring.

The pressure exerted downwardly on the beam .65and blade 64 by thespring 156 has the .efiectof transferring a portion of the weight of theframe to the blade, andis particularly useful when the blade loses itskeen edge. As the blade becomes .dull, it requires more pressure to holdit down so that it bites into the ice, and as a result the blade has atendency to slide on the surface of the ice. In spite of their heavycross section, the beam .65 and blade 64 tend to bow upwardly from'theincreased downwardly. This added downward spring pressure "on the beamandbladeconstitutes aportion-bf theweighfof the frame, and is applied'to the beam independently "of the depth adjustment linkages-atbothends'thereof.

The angle of the 'blade'to't'he surface of theiceis regulated by meansof a hand wheel' l65, which projects upwardly hem 5 the frame member531at the:'midpointthere of. The hand wheel 165 is mounted on thetop-endof a screw shaft 166 that is-rotatablysupported'by a hearing 5467{Figure Q y-on the' horizontal flangeof member said bearing alsorestraining-said shaft against lengthwise movement. The 'shaft l66extends dlown thru 1a hole in the supporting flange, and-its threadedlower-por'tion is screwed into a nut 170. hugs-on the-front side =of=thenut are connected by a' pin '171"-to a'lug 1'72 projecting 'rearwardlyfrom "theback*edge of the beam 65. Turning the handwhee'l' 165 causesthe n'ut 1 70 to:move up or down the threads ofthe shaft 166, therebyincreasing or decreasing the angle of attaek of the'knifefiblade.

Trailing behind the blade 64 rs a water spreader 175, which functions.to :sprea'd a :thin'film ofwa'ter'on the surface "of the ice to replace'the ice that has been shaved 0d, and to fill any crac 'ks or .skate cutsextending below the shaved surface. The spreadercomprises a transverselydisposed, flat steel plate 176, having fore andtaft spaced, parallel.Pstrips of lhardv felt 177 attached fOihe bottom surface thereof,which'form achannel 17S extending lengthwise of the plate. The. endsoflthe channel are closed, and when theispreader is'rest'ing on the ice,as in Figure 4, the feltstrips177rsealthechannel-178 against excessiveleakage. .Wateris admitted to the channel .178 thru a flexible pipe.lflti 'which dn one form er theuinvention, is connected at one end "to-a valve'llsl communicating with the water'tank '17. The otherendof'thepipe 180 is attached "to .a fitting'l182, which is connected tothe spreader at the midpoint thereof. The fitting 182 extends thru theplate 176 into the channel 178, and is provided with oppositely facingoutlet :holes .183 that direct the water laterally outward toward theends .of the channel.

Connected into the channel 178rat the outer ends thereof are outletpipes .185, 186, that 'are joined to opposite branches of a reconnection.187. .The third branch of the T-connection is joined to a flexible pipe138, which extends up to one inlettside of a-3-way valve 191). Theoutlet side of valve is connected to a flexible pipe 191 which 'isconnected, in turn, to the intake of apump .192 mounted on the angleiron 24. The pump 192 may be driven fromlthe vehicle engine inanysuitable manner,.and its outletis connected to a pipe 193,which'exten'ds up-to a; point 111631 the top of the back board 75 of the.snow boxgand then passes 'thru the back board to discharge into thesnow box.

The other inlet side of ithe'valve 190 has a.flexible pipe 195 1connected thereto, which extends down into the framework of the unit .18to pick up any standing water on the ice resulting from excessivemelting. The pipe 195 passes down :into the frame work just ahead oftheangle member 53 :and behind the beam 65, and is held with -.its bottomend just above the surface .of the ice by a bracket 196. The bracket 196is attached to the .bottom edge of the downwardly extending flange 197.ofangleoiron53, which reaches down to a point just-a .few inches. abovethe surface of the ice. QArubbersqueegee strip 198 is also attached tothe bottom edge of the flange 197.and wipes the surface of theice tosweep any melted ice water ahead of it. The water ahead of the squeegeestrip 198 is sucked up by the pipe 195 whenthe valve190 is in the properposition, anddischarged by the pump 192 into the snow box.

The 3-way valve .190 may. be-turnedso that pipe11-88 is open to thepump192 and pipe 195 is closed; or pipe ...7 195 is open and 188 isclosed; or both pipes 188 and 195 are open. The valve may also be closedentirely. In the first of theabove-mentioned positions, the pump 192would draw water solely from the ends of the spreader 175; while in thesecond position, the pump would suck up the surplus water ahead of thesqueegee but would not draw water from the spreader 175; and in thethird position would draw water from both sources. The valve would beclosed only when the pump 192 was not in operation.

In a slightly modified form of the invention, the water tank 17 isomitted altogether, and water for the spreader 175 is taken from thebottom of the snow box 16. This arrangement is shown in phantom lines inFigure 4, wherein the flexible pipe 180' is connected to a valve 200mounted on the bottom of the snow box and communicating with theinterior thereof. A filter 201 filters out any dirt in the water. Thevalve 200 is shown in solid lines in Figure 4, owing to the fact that itis embodied in the water-tank version of the invention as a drain valvefor emptying-the snow box of melted ice and surplus water dischargedfrom the spreader 175. When the pipe 180 is connected to valve 200, thenormal procedure would be to start the resurfacing operation with acertain quan tity of water in the snow box, and this would be added toby melting ice dumped into the snow box by the conveyer 19.

The spreader 175 is connected to the sled unit 18 by means of two slings205, which hang from the ends of rearwardly extending arms 206 and 207.The arms 206 and 207 are fixed to opposite ends of a rock shaft 208,which is journaled in bearings 209 mounted on the back side'of anglemember 53. Arm 206 is one arm of a bell-crank, the other arm of whichextends upwardly and is designated 210. Arm 210 is connected by a link211 (see Figures 7 and 8) to another arm 212, which is fixed to one endof a shaft 213. Shaft 213 is journaled in a bearing block 214 mounted ontop of angle member 53, and fixed to its other end is another arm 215.The arms 212, 215 constitute a bell-crank, of which arm 215 is a handle.When the bell-crank is in the position shown in Figure 7, the spreader175 is lowered to the ice and in operating condition. When thebell-crank is rotated to the position shown in Figure 8, the spreader israised to transport position and locked by the over-center position ofarm 212 with respect to link 211.

The operation of the machine is believed to be selfevident from theforegoing description. The machine is 'in operating condition when thesled unit 18 is lowered to the ice, as in the drawings. As the machineis driven forwardly, the blade 64 takes a light shaving cut on the iceto clean off the surface. The shaved ice is moved in toward the centerof the sled unit 18 by the worm screw conveyer 67, and is there pickedup by the chain conveyer 19, which dumps the material into the snow box16. Water from the tank 17 (or from the bottom of the snow box) runs bygravity to the center of the spreader 175, and thence to the outer endsthereof. Surplus water is picked up from the ends of the spreaderchannel 178 by the pump 192, and is discharged into the snow box 16. Ifthere are puddles of water standing on the ice, the valve 190 is turnedso that the water is sucked up thru the pipe 195 and discharged into thesnow box.

While I have shown and described in considerable detail what I believeto be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understoodthat various changes may be made in the shape and arrangement of theseveral parts without departing from the broad scope of the invention,as defined in the accompanying claims.

I claim:

1. In an ice rink resurfacing machine, the combination of aself-propelled vehicle having a transversely disposed frame attachedthereto, said frame resting directly on the surface of the ice andfloating with respect to said vehicle,

a pair of arms pivoted at one end on said frame for vertical swingingmovement, said arms being spaced apart laterally and extending in agenerally fore and aft direction, a blade-carrying member extendingbetween said arms and pivotally connected thereto intermediate the endsof the arms, means for rocking said member with respect to said arms toadjust the angle of attack of said blade, a pair of adjusting screws onsaid frame connected to the free ends of said arms for raising andlowering the sameto regulate the depth of cut of said blade, springmeans on said frame engaging said blade-carrying member intermediate itsends and pressing downwardly thereon to counteract upward deflection ofthe midportion of the blade due to pressure of the ice, and a pair ofsprings on opposite ends of said frame bearing downwardly on said freeends of said arms to take up any clearancesin the adjusting connectionsand to hold said blade down against the ice with a resilient springload.

2. In an ice rink resurfacing machine, the combination of aself-propelled vehicle having a transversely disposed frame attachedthereto, said frame resting directly on the surface of the ice andfloating with respect to said vehicle, a pair of arms pivoted at one endon said frame for ver tical swinging movement, said arms being spacedapart laterally and extending in a generally fore and aft direction, ablade-carrying member extending between said arms and pivotallyconnected thereto intermediate the ends of the arms, spring means onsaid frame engaging said blade-carrying member adjacent the midportionthereof and pressing downwardly thereon to bow said blade downwardly andto transfer a substantial portion of the Weight of the frame to theblade, means on said frame connected to the free ends of said arms forraising and lowering the same to regulate the depth or" cut of saidblade, and other means on said frame connected to said blade-carryingmember at a point spaced radially from the pivot axis thereof forrocking said member to adjust the angle of attack of the blade.

3. In an ice rink resurfacing machine, the combination of aself-propelled vehicle having a transversely disposed frame attachedthereto, said frame resting directly on the surface of the ice andfloating with respect to said vehicle, a pair of arms pivoted at one endon said frame for vertical swinging movement, said arms being spacedapart laterally and extending in a generally fore and aft direction, ablade-carrying member extending between said arms and pivotallyconnected thereto intermediate the ends of the arms, a pair of adjustingscrews on said frame connected to the free ends of said arms for raisingand lowering the same to regulate the depth of cut of said blade, 21pair of springs on opposite ends of said frame bearing downwardly onsaid free ends of said arms to take up any clearances in the adjustingconnections, another spring connected at one end to said frame, andlinkage means connected to the other end of said lastnamed spring andbearing downwardly on said bladecarrying member adjacent the midpointthereof to hold the center section of said blade down against the ice.

4. In a machine of the class described having a blade for shaving theice, and means for collecting and removing the shaved ice, a waterspreader disposed behind said collecting and removing means, said waterspreader com prising a transverse member having a layer of resilientmaterial attached to the underside thereof bearing on the surface of theice, said resilient material being arranged to form a closed-end channelextending from one end of the spreader to the other, a water supply pipeconnected to said channel adjacent the midpoint thereof, said pipedirecting water laterally outward toward the ends of said channel, apair of outlet pipes connected into the ends of said channel, and a pumpconnected to said outlet pipes for withdrawing surplus water from saidchannel While the machine. is in operation.

5. In a machine of the class described having a blade for shaving theice, and means for collecting and removing the shaved ice, a waterspreader disposed behind said collecting and removing means, said waterspreader comprising a transverse member having a layer of resilientmaterial attached to the underside thereof bearing on the surface of theice, said resilient material being arranged to form a closed-end channelextending from one end of the spreader to the other, and means forcontinuously admitting water to said channel and means for withdrawingthe surplus water from said channel.

6. .ln an ice rink resurfacing machine of the class described having ablade for shaving the ice, a receptacle for the shaved ice, means forcollecting and removing the shaved ice to said receptacle, a water tankmounted on said machine, a water spreader disposed behind saidcollecting and removing means, said Water spreader comprising atransverse member having a layer of resilient material attached to theunderside thereof bearing on the surface of the ice, said resilientmaterial being arranged to form a closed-end channel extending from oneend of the spreader to the other, a water supply pipe connecting saidtank to said channel adjacent the midpoint thereof, a pair of outletpipes connected into the ends of said channel, and a pump connected tosaid outlet pipes for Withdrawing surplus water from the ends of saidchannel and discharging said surplus water into said shaved icereceptacle.

7. In an ice rink resurfacing machine of the class described having ablade for shaving the ice, a receptacle for the shaved ice, means forcollecting and removing the shaved ice to said receptacle, a waterspreader disposed behind said collecting and removing means, said waterspreader comprising a transverse member having a layer of resilientmaterial attached to the underside thereof bearing on the surface of theice, said resilient material being arranged to form a closed-end channelextending from one end of the spreader to the other, a water supply pipecommunicating with the bottom of said receptacle and connected into saidchannel, a filter for filtering out dirt in the water entering saidsupply pipe from said receptacle, at least one discharge pipe connectedinto said channel at a distance from said supply pipe, and a pumpconnected to said discharge pipe for withdrawing surplus water from saidchannel and discharging the same into said receptacle.

8. In a machine of the class described having a frame resting on thesurface of the ice, a transversely disposed blade having its endsmounted on said frame, and spring means on said frame engaging saidblade intermediate its ends and pressing downwardly thereon to deflectthe midportion of the blade slightly so as to counteract upward bowingof the blade by pressure of the ice, said spring means acting also totransfer a substantial portion of the weight of the frame to the blade.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS289,331 Apple Nov. 27, 1883 652,311 Hourihan June 26, 1900 1,431,594Oswald Oct. 10, 1922 1,497,630 Beatty et al. June 10, 1924 1,561,368Staley Nov. 10, 1925 1,762,599 Thorud June 10, 1930 2,031,751 Watt et alFeb. 25, 1936 2,259,120 Sweeney Oct. 14, 1941 2,573,921 McNamara Nov. 6,1951 2,642,679 Zamboni June 23, 1953

